I’ve copied the places you wanted to hit up and will give you some thoughts. I’ve driven the whole west coast from San Diego all the way to Vancouver, Canada and an expert going from CA to OR since I make that drive about 10 times per year at least!
Places we want to hit:
-Yellowstone National Park
-Zion National Park
-Grand Canyon
-Hoover Dam
-Death Valley (Is it worth the drive??)
-Hollywood Sign
-Pacific Coast Highway
-Laguna Seca
-Golden Gate Bridge
-Redwood Forrest
I’ve never been to Yellowstone or Zion so can’t comment there.
If you are going to the Grand Canyon, as another suggested do the North or South Rim (south is more crowded I heard from tourists). We made the mistake of going to the West Rim which is actually private Indian country. I forgot what tribe but actually MAJORITY of the Grand Canyon belongs to this tribe and the West Rim is private property. They own it and they charge you an arm and leg to tour it. This is the spot where they built that glass bridge that you can walk out on and take pictures but only with their cameras and you must take your shoes off. We only chose this side because we were in Vegas and drove to the Hoover dam and then to the West Rim. One word of caution, do not take this route in your NSX. There is a 20 mile stretch of road that is nothing but gravel and dirt. We had a rental so no big deal but it will just kill the NSX!
Hoover dam is worth seeing as it’s one of those things you just stand in awe and wonder how they built it. It’s not a great driving road as it’s crowded with tourists but fun to see the dam Dam…hehe
Hollywood sign can only be viewed from a distance, I asked this question to a lot of locals and basically you can’t get anywhere near it unless you plan to hike and trespass.
Personally I don’t think Death Valley is worth the drive as once you’ve seen one desert you’ve seen them all. On a road trip from Denver to CA, I’ve seen all the desert I want to see in a life time!
Laguna Seca is north of San Francisco near Napa wine country. There is a lot of winding open roads out there and traffic isn’t too bad. I would follow the other guys suggestions on roads to take but I’ve driven up there a handful of times and always pleasant experience.
Golden Gate is a must see just because of the great views and San Francisco. It’s a town that is quite unique and even after 10+ years out here I still get shocked by some of the things I see. Tons to do in SF although it’s really not friendly to the NSX. Road are bad and parking is risky especially if your car is lowered. I just think SF is a place to be enjoyed without the NSX. Japantown, Haight Ashbury, Fisherman’s Whart, Coit Tower are all pretty cool sights in the city. A good drive would be to cross over the Golden Gate bridge and head up to the Marin Headlands. This is where the picture below was taken!
Redwood Forest you have listed last and that is a MUST SEE. As another guy said it’s a place that really makes you feel small (not literally) but just in the sense how old those trees are and how short of a life span we really have. I love this forest and great place to see. The roads are not too bad.
If you do have time to meet up that would be cool – we are out here about 40 minutes south of SF and our claim to fame is primarily Silicon Valley but I think if you are driving your NSX here, a definite trip would be Santa Cruz and also Highway 9 up Skyline Blvd, go to Alice’s restaurant for breakfast and then take the highway twisties all the way to Half Moon Bay and have brunch at the Ritz Carlton (only on Sunday). Beautiful views and it’s my wife’s favorite place to dine.
Hope this helps
rick
Marin Headlands:
